Rates rise in Treasury bill auction

The Treasury Department sold $18 billion in three-month bills at a discount rate of 1.050 percent, up from 1.040 percent last week. An additional $15 billion was sold in six-month bills at a rate of 1.375 percent, up from 1.335 percent.

The three-month rate was the highest since May 10 when the bills sold for 1.060 percent. The six-month rate was the highest since Nov. 4, 2002, when the rate was 1.395 percent.

The new discount rates understate the actual return to investors - 1.066 percent for three-month bills with a $10,000 bill selling for $9,973.50 and 1.404 percent for a six-month bill selling for $9,930.10.

In a separate report, the Federal Reserve said Monday that the average yield for one-year constant maturity Treasury bills, a popular index for making changes in adjustable rate mortgages, was 1.83 percent last week, unchanged from the previous week.